A Soviet space program consisting of two spacecraft, Vega 1 and Vega 2, launched in December 1984 to study Venus and Halley's Comet in a single combined mission. Both spacecraft deployed landers and balloon probes into the Venusian atmosphere in June 1985, then used a Venus gravity assist to redirect toward Halley's Comet, flying past it in March 1986 and returning roughly 1,500 images, among the first close-up pictures ever taken of a comet nucleus.
Facts
Mission TypeRobotic Venus and Halley's Comet flyby program 1 Launch DateDate of Vega 1's launch; Vega 2 followed on 21 December 1984. End DateDate of Vega 2's Halley's Comet flyby, the program's primary scientific objectives complete; some instrument operation continued afterward. OutcomeSuccessful; both spacecraft delivered Venus landers and balloon probes, then returned some of the first close-up images of Halley's Comet's nucleus during their March 1986 flybys. 1 Mission Type
Mission Type (category) Mission Type (category)Robotic / Uncrewed Mission 1 Connections
Operated By
Source Wikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)
Additional Source Vega program (Wikipedia)Wikipedia: Vega program, lead section
Spacecraft Of
Targets
Source Wikipedia: Halley's Comet
Sources
1. Wikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)
Wikimedia Foundation- Mission Type (category): Flyby Mission
- Mission Type (category): Robotic / Uncrewed Mission
- Mission Type: Robotic Venus and Halley's Comet flyby program
- Launch Date: 1984-12-15
- End Date: 1986-03-09
- Outcome: Successful; both spacecraft delivered Venus landers and balloon probes, then returned some of the first close-up images of Halley's Comet's nucleus during their March 1986 flybys.
2. Vega program (Wikipedia)
Lead paragraph
Vega 1 and Vega 2 were uncrewed spacecraft
Lead paragraph, target
was a series of Venus missions
Lead section
Vega 1 and Vega 2 were uncrewed spacecraft launched in a cooperative effort among the Soviet Union, who also provided the spacecraft and launch vehicle, Austria, Bulgaria, France, Hungary, the German Democratic Republic, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the Federal Republic of Germany in December 1984.
- Wikipedia: Vega program, mission list
- Operated By: Soviet space program, Wikipedia: Vega program, lead section
In Group: Venus Probe Programs, Lead sentence
The Vega program (Russian: Вега) was a series of Venus missions that also took advantage of the appearance of Halley's Comet in 1986.
View the SourceVenus (Wikipedia)
Targets: Venus, Article textQuote, Targets: Venus, Article text
In 1985 the Soviet Vega programme with its Vega 1 and Vega 2 missions carried the last entry probes and carried the first ever extraterrestrial aerobots for the first time achieving atmospheric flight outside Earth by employing inflatable balloons.
Wikipedia: Halley's Comet
Wikimedia FoundationTargets: Halley's Comet, Article textQuote, Targets: Halley's Comet, Article text
It was also visited by the two spacecraft of the Vega program, Vega 1 & 2, on 6 and 9 March, respectively.
Wikipedia: Vega 1
Includes: Vega 1, Lead paragraph, part-of
Vega 1 (along with its twin Vega 2) was a Soviet space probe, part of the Vega program.
Spacecraft Of: Vega 1, Lead paragraph, mission-of
Vega 1 (along with its twin Vega 2) was a Soviet space probe, part of the Vega program.
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